FIGURE 2: One Ramsar wetland on King Island in the Cradle Coast region

FIGURE 2: One Ramsar wetland on King Island in the Cradle Coast region

Lavinia State Reserve, as shown in Figure 2, was first listed in 1982. It is situated on the north-east coast of King Island, between Boulder Point to the north and Cowper Point to the south, approximately 12 km north of Naracoopa. The northern section of the Site extends approximately 8 km inland. This 7,043 ha reserve contains a highly significant and diverse set of ecosystems, including a significant lagoon and wetland system, coastal and bush landscapes, and a rich Aboriginal cultural heritage.

Major wetlands within the site include a large estuary with saltmarsh, coastal lagoons, perched lakes, swamp forests, and numerous smaller, seasonally inundated, wetland areas. The site is one of the few unaltered areas of King Island and contains much of the remaining native vegetation on the Island. The closed canopy of the swamp forest exceeds 30 metres in places. The reserve also contains about 200 hectares of feeding habitat for the critically endangered Orange-bellied Parrot. The Ramsar Site is contained wholly within a State Reserve under the management of the Tasmania Parks and Wildlife Service (PWS).

The site is known to have significant Aboriginal sites, particularly around the lagoon system and the coastal beaches. The reserve is surrounded by private freehold and some unallocated Crown land. The land use in the reserve is nature conservation and recreation (boating, fishing, camping, off-road driving). In contrast, the surrounding area supports livestock grazing and to a lesser extent mineral exploitation and mining.

Description

The Ecological Character Description (ECD) for the reserve was completed in 2012 (Newall and Lloyd 2012). The ECD noted there was little baseline information on ecological condition at the time of listing in 1982, and that collection of information on the status and extent of four identified critical ecosystems is required, these being:

• Sea Elephant River estuary ecosystem • Coastal strip ecosystem

• Dunes ecosystem

• Northern sandsheet ecosystem

Threats and challenges

The most immediate threats to the ecological character of the site are:

• Changes in fire regime, which have the potential to impact on vegetation communities. Fire is an important component of the site, with different vegetation communities requiring different burning regimes, ranging from 200 years or more between burns for some communities, to less than 30 years for others. Misuse of burning can have major consequences on the vegetation diversity of the site.

Appropriate burning regimes need to be designed by vegetation ecologists, local landowners, and other stakeholders working together. • Inappropriate use of recreational vehicles which disturb nests, damage vegetation and cause erosion.

• Weeds already present include Psoralea pinnata and Sea Spurge. Psoralea pinnata has established a stronghold in the reserve and has the potential to invade large areas. The coastal weed Sea Spurge is also identified as a threat to coastal habitats, dune systems and shorebird nesting sites.

• Feral cats exist within the site and are considered a major threat to the Orange-bellied Parrot due to the birds’ habit of feeding on low saltmarsh which makes them susceptible to predation. • Threatening disease root rot fungus, Phytophthora cinnamomi, has potential to spread from tracks to other components of vegetation communities. • Surrounding agricultural land use which can cause nutrient and sediment runoff to the site, salinisation and be a source of weeds.

• Climate change can be expected to have a wide range of impacts on the site, potentially including changing hydrology, geomorphology, vegetation, habitat and species. The threats posed from adjoining landscapes cannot be managed without wider community engagement and the use of effective approaches that align with NRM service provider roles. The ECD recommended that a monitoring program be established to provide baseline and trend information for reporting on change in the ecological condition of the Ramsar site and in monitoring of condition and extent of critical flora and fauna components.

3.2 RLP Outcome 2: The trajectory of species targeted under the Threatened Species Strategy, and other

EPBC Act priority species, is stabilised or improved.

The Australian Government identify priority species through a number of mechanisms, including:

• The 100 Priority Species • The Threatened Species Strategies and associated

Action Plans

Information on location, threats and actions can be found using:

• The Tasmanian Natural Values Atlas

• The Commonwealth Protected Matters Search Tool

• EPBC Recovery Plans and Listing Statements

• Other published material such as Conservation

Advice and scientific papers • Websites such as Tasmanian Threatened Species link Across the two Threatened Species Strategies (2015-2020 and 2021-2031) there are 12 species of fauna and no species of flora in the Cradle Coast region that have been listed as Australian Government priorities. (Table 4). All of these have been identified as CCA regional priorities. Table 4 also lists a further 59 EPBC-listed species which are prioritised in the CCA NRM Strategy. Of these, 20 are grouped together as “threatened orchids” and 17 are non-threatened migratory or resident birds (listed as marine and/or migratory under the EPBC Act). The Cradle Coast region supports a large population of migratory birds that breed overseas and spend summers feeding in north-west Tasmania. There are a further 18 EPBC-listed threatened species, and another 33 species that are listed as “marine” species (such as Great White Shark, Subantarctic Fur Seal and Pacific Gull), which were all assessed using the same MCA but are not regional priorities.